Growing Broad Beans in Containers
You don't need a veg bed to grow broad beans. A roomy pot on a patio or balcony can give you several handfuls of sweet, tender beans in early summer. The secret is to pick a short variety and a wide pot, then keep the compost moist once the plants are in flower.
Quick answer
Pick a dwarf variety, such as 'The Sutton'. Choose a pot 40 cm or more across, with holes in the base, and use peat-free multi-purpose or soil-based compost. Sow the beans 5 cm deep, 15 cm apart. Check the compost often, as pots lose water quickly, and give a high-potash liquid feed every fortnight from first flowering.
Choose a dwarf variety
Standard broad beans can grow taller than a metre, which is too tall and top-heavy for most pots. Dwarf types stay short and bushy. 'The Sutton' is the classic choice, reaching only about 50 cm, and it's an RHS AGM variety. Its low height also makes it a safe bet for exposed balconies and roof terraces.
Pick the right pot
For broad beans, a wide pot is more useful than a deep one. Aim for a pot 40 cm or more across. A wider pot fits more plants, and they steady one another. Holes in the base are essential, because beans sitting in wet compost can rot before they sprout.
Large patio tubs, long planters and roomy fabric bags all suit broad beans. Skip anything shallow, such as a standard grow bag laid flat, unless you can raise the sides.
How many broad beans per pot
At 15 cm spacing, a 40 cm round pot fits five or six beans: one in the centre with the rest in a circle around it. A 60 cm planter takes about eight, set out in two zigzag rows. Planting this snugly is a good thing, as a tight cluster stands up to wind far better than one lonely stem.
Compost
A bag of peat-free multi-purpose compost is all most pots need. Soil-based compost is a good alternative for bigger containers, since the extra weight stops the pot tipping over and the compost keeps its goodness for longer.
Sowing broad beans in pots
Make holes 5 cm deep, drop in one bean per hole, scar side downwards, cover them over and give the pot a good drink.
Timing is the same as for beans in the ground. An autumn sowing gives the earliest pods, but only if the pot can spend winter under cover, such as in an unheated greenhouse. Otherwise, sow from late winter through spring and stand the pot outside. As a bonus, a pot off the ground is harder for mice to raid than a row of freshly sown beans.
Sowing dates are covered in when to plant broad beans in the UK
Support
Dwarf plants in a crowded pot mostly keep themselves upright. If a few start to flop, poke some twiggy prunings in around the rim, or tie a length of garden twine right around the group like a belt.
Watering
A pot holds only a small store of water, and a pot full of leafy beans can use it up in a day or two of spring sunshine. Feel the compost every other day, and every day in warm spells. If it's dry a finger's depth down, water until it runs out of the base. The weeks in flower matter most, because dry compost then means fewer pods.
There's more detail in how often to water broad beans
Feeding
Beans in open ground seldom need extra food, but a pot has a limited supply and the plants work through it. Once you see the first flowers, water on a high-potash liquid fertiliser every two weeks. Tomato feed is ideal and helps the pods set and swell.
Position
Choose a bright spot with some shelter from wind. Broad beans are a cool-season crop, so spring sun suits them and there's no need to find the hottest corner of the garden.
Pinch out the tips
When you spot the first small pods low down, pinch out the growing tip of every stem. Blackfly love these soft tips, and removing them sends the plant's effort into the beans instead.
Picking
Start picking from the lowest pods, which fill first, and work up the stem. Take them while the beans are still small and soft. Picking every few days encourages more pods to form.
To tell when pods are ready, see when to harvest broad beans
The full guide is how to grow broad beans in the UK
Common questions
Can you grow broad beans in pots?
Yes. Dwarf varieties such as 'The Sutton' grow well in a pot 40 cm or more across. Keep the compost moist and feed them once they flower.
How many broad beans can you grow in one pot?
Five or six in a 40 cm pot, spaced roughly 15 cm apart. Planting them snugly helps them stay upright.
Do broad beans in pots need feeding?
Yes, once they start flowering. A pot has limited nutrients, so give a high-potash liquid feed, like tomato feed, every two weeks.
Do broad beans in pots need support?
Not usually. Dwarf plants packed together tend to prop each other up. If they lean, add some twiggy sticks around the rim or tie twine around the group.
Variety, pot size, spacing and feeding advice based on RHS guidance.